Los Angeles Forum for Architecture and Urban Design
The Los Angeles Forum for Architecture and Urban Design provides a framework for design professionals and members of the general public to explore, evaluate, and impact the development of architecture in Los Angeles. Throughout its 20+ years of operation, the Forum has brought together young designers, seasoned professionals, critics, urban theorists, artists, students, and people interested in their physical environment in a diverse series of activities. The Forum seeks to reach out beyond the confines of professional organizations, schools and established groups and does not limit itself to one approach to design or theory. It provokes discussion, seeks out places and designs unseen or unnoticed by the general public, publicizes architectural investigation and commentary, and promotes the serious exploration of strategies to influence the development of our urban environment.
Financial support for LA Forum projects has been received from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, the California Arts Council, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, the Woodbury University School of Architecture, and from many members over the years. The Forum is widely recognized as one of the most active architecture and urban design groups in Southern California.
Founded in January of 1987, the Forum has organized lecture series and site visits to significant buildings and sites throughout Los Angeles and the region; hosted a number of special events, symposia and a theory reading group; held several design competitions; distributed a quarterly newsletter and online articles; produced many publications, including Experimental Architecture in Los Angeles (Rizzoli International) and Everyday Urbanism (Monacelli Press), as well as national-distributed pamphlet-sized books; and has worked with other groups, architects and institutions to understand its community and participate in activities to rebuild it.